From the Thirty Years on Project. Click the poster to go to the entry.

Also from 1984, the John Hughes classic. Again, click the Poster and enjoy.

Returning to Santa Anita for the second day of the Eighth Annual Best Picture Showcase. Last week we ducked out just before the start of “The Wolf of Wall Street” since it was not a well liked film at our house. We drove over to dinner at a local salad place, cruised back home. Settled Mrs. K in since she was not feeling well, drove back to the theater, stopped for some drinks at the snack bar, and still ended up watching the last forty minutes of the movie. Geez is that thing long.

This week includes the one film I have yet to see an that is Spike Jonez “Her”. I here good things and I will have a mini review later this weekend.

The folks at AMC have elected to start the screenings at noon this year, which is a lot later than has been the case. I’m hoping that the 10:30 start time for “Gravity” does not make this a hard one to stay up for. The space drama would be my favorite for the big award this year, but my prediction is that “12 Years a Slave” will be honored. It is a worthy film, but not quite the achievement that some have suggested.

It should be another great day with the Yennys. Last week they only did one round of trivia, we still came home with some loot. Let’s see if we can get in on it again. Below are the previous review links.

We went Tuesday to this screening at the Archlight Theater in Hollywood. The show was not quite sold out but it was quite full and everyone was very enthusiastic. Before the Q and A and the movie, the theater was filled with the sounds of Ted Neeley’s new music project and it sounded quite good. We arrived about half an hour before the show so we got to hear most of the album called “Rock Opera”. The Panel consisted of the promoter for the tour Frank Munoz, who acted as M.C. and interviewer, Ted Neely who played Christ in the movie, Barry Dennen who was Pontius Pilot, and Robert Iscove the choreographer who was essentially a second director on the film. Each of them shared some charming stories and some dramatic behind the scenes pieces of information. All of them spoke warmly of the late Carl Anderson, who fans know was Judas in the movie and had a terrific soul voice.

Jesus Christ Superstar is a phenomenon that many of the young people of today would not recognize. The idea started as a concept album, it was turned into a stage piece, than a touring Broadway show and finally it was adapted to the screen. Imagine a record without any pop stars on it, becoming a huge best seller and dominating the charts. Then try to visualize that being turned into a show. Basically, it started as a recording and everything else followed.

I saw the staged version of the musical in a touring production of a Canadian Company at my high school auditorium. I suspect that this was one of the many unauthorized versions that were subsequently shut down by lawsuits around the world, they were playing before the Broadway show had even opened. After the Broadway run , Jesus Christ Superstar did a stand at the Universal Amphitheater in the open air. I did not get a chance to see it there but I remember television coverage of the event and I thought the show under the stars with the lights of the San Fernando Valley off to the side would have been wonderful. 

When the film opened in 1973, I did go to see it. I think my screening was at the old UA Theater on Colorado Blvd. but it is forty years ago now and I am not as sure of this as I am of other memories from the time. It was one of the films on the original “Movie A Day” project that got me started blogging in the first play. However I did not do that post. I was in Alaska for a week and my daughter Amanda covered it for me. You can find her original post here. As a kid, Amanda had a little cassette “Walkman” (remember those?) and I had recorded a copy of the movie soundtrack for her that she listened to incessantly. To this day she still rates Jesus Christ Superstar among her favorite movies. Of course we watch it every year along with other religious epics at Easter time.

The touring version of the film is an amazing looking digital film with a spectacular sound mix. I was very impressed with the way the movie looked but especially the way it sounded. The little girl sitting next to me [the one who was eight or so and not my daughter , who had turned back into a little girl while we were watching] sang every song and hummed along with the music. She could not contain her enthusiasm and clapped out loud by herself several times. She was joined in applauding by the rest of the audience after some particularly great pieces. “Gethsemane” brings tears and it nearly brought the house down.

During the Q and A, Frank and Ted asked if anyone in the audience had actually been in the movie. Only in Hollywood my friends, there were a half dozen dancers and background performers who had come out for the show. They all came down at the end for a group picture. One of them had played the apostle Matthew in the movie and several of “the women”, were also there. Each time one of them appeared on screen in the movie a whoop would go up and we could tell exactly which actress was there.

After the show there was a merchandise table and I had the pleasure of being served by Wil Wheaton. I’m sure there is a connection there, but I don’t know what it is. I’m not usually a celebrity stalker but Josh Groban reached over my shoulder to shake hands with someone at the table at about the same time. Close Encounters of the Odd kind I guess. We did take a picture with Barry Dennan who was so fantastic in the movie and he was quite sweet to us as we greeted him. There was a long line to a meet and greet with Ted Neeley, after waiting about 45 minutes without much movement, we had to move on. It was still a great experience.

I don’t really collect autographs but I do collect posters and there was one for the film screen tour that was signed by Ted Neeley, Yvonne Elliman, Barry Dennan and Josh Mostel. I could not say no and I look forward to getting it framed. For now here is a little sneak peek.

For the Eighth year in a row we will be attending the AMC Best Picture Showcase. Since the Academy expanded to allow the possibility of up to 10 films being nominated, they have had two years with ten nominees and three straight years with nine. I have as yet been unable to convince the wonderful Mrs. Kirkham to attempt the 24 hour marathon of films. We have instead, gone to the two weekend event the last three years. Once again, this year we will be attending at the AMC Santa Anita located in the Arcadia Shopping Center. While not all of the family will be there (Someone has to feed and watch the dogs), we will be joined by our friends the Yennys. Anne has frequently joined us but this will be only the second time that we could convince John to give up work or the golf course and take the plunge.

The menu for tomorrow looks like this.

 

 We have already seen all of the films for this weekend, so this is an opportunity to view them in objective terms as the Awards close in upon us. With the exception of “The Wolf of Wall Street” a return visit is a delightful prospect. It is likely that we will skip Mr. Scorsese’s three hour indulgence of boorish behavior and instead try to have a nice meal before experiencing the trauma of  “12 Years a Slave” again. After the event tomorrow, I will post some thoughts and the links to my prior reviews. If there are any significant differences in my evaluation, I look forward to sharing them with you. For now, we will just try to enjoy the popcorn and admire the work of the talented people who brought us these films.

Here are the links to the original reviews:

The great video above is from “Beyond the Marquee” and is part of an ongoing web series devoted to the movies. We had the pleasure of visiting the exhibit the day of the reception. Unfortunately our plans for the evening precluded us from staying for what looked like a wonderful gathering. Tom Peak, the son of artist Bob Peak was there early and he spoke to several of us about his father’s work. I saw Drew Struzan pull up and get out of his car just as we were leaving. It took a lot of energy on my part not to blow off our plans for later in the evening and just follow him inside.

I’d taken one cell phone shot before I noticed the sign asking that there be no photography. I stopped immediately but after seeing the work displayed in the above video, my guess is that it will not offend anyone too much if I share that picture here.

The works here are by the late Bob Peak, an artist who defined movie illustration design in the 60s and seventies. I’m staring straight ahead as I type this and I have his work for Excalibur on the cover of the Laserdisc on the wall. According to the exhibit notes, Bob Peak was most proud of the campaign art he did for “Apocalypse Now”. This art for “Silverado” hung on my wall in the form of a poster for several years. I may dig it out and return it to it’s previous spot.

I have written a couple of posts on the Drew Struzan documentary, including the listing on my ten favorite films from last year. The exhibit gave me a chance to see the detail work on some of those iconic images. I envy those with the powers and imagination to create in this manner.

If you are in the Southern California area, you really should take the trip over to Forest Lawn Glendale to see the exhibit. The museum there is lovely and although it might be disconcerting to be at a cemetery, the views are spectacular and it is free.

Seeing how I am getting on in years, I’m looking for ways to keep track of the past. Here is a quick list of five movies I’ve seen from the year I was born.

Somewhere over the last couple of years, Amanda has fallen in love with this movie. I have admired it completely since I saw the restoration with my Father back in 1989 at the Century City AMC Complex. Last night was the second time in 7 months that we got to experience it on the big screen. That’s in addition to the two times I’ve watched it on the fabulous Blu Ray Special package that I got as a Father’s Day gift. I’m not going to do a complete post on it today, but I will post a link to the Vlog I put up last June, in case you missed it.

Last nights screening was at the Egyptian Theater. The audience was packed and there were hundreds of people seeing it for the first time.

Needless to say we had a great time. Amanda’s New Years Resolution is to see this on the big screen every time it plays somewhere in the L.A. Area. That seems good to me. 

Bruce Broughton defends actions after rescinded Academy Award nomination – CBS News

Composer Bruce Broughton has been stripped of his Academy Award Nomination for a song he composed for a small Christian based film. The song was a surprise nominee because big time music figures who made contributions to other films did not get nominated and this did. There is not a clear statement concerning a rule violation, instead the implication is that because Broughton is a former governor of the Academy, that a personal e-mail carries with it some extra onus and maybe even intimidation. Having read the e-mail in question, I have to call BS on that. His tentative outreach was not to the entire music branch, and it is the mildest form of promotion you can imagine. The idea that he is using his position in the Academy as a way of gaining a nomination is preposterous. If this were true, no one actively serving on the board could ever hope their work in the industry could be nominated  at the same time they are volunteering to administer Academy business.

These people are shooting themselves in the foot and doing so in a way that is embarrassing and humiliating to a working professional who has given his time to the very institution that is now stepping on him. Unless there is some other issue that remains in the background, this is an incredibly unfair act and probably completely unnecessary. The chance of this piece of music winning the award is zero. There is more pressure in the guilds and production centers to vote for any nominee than this little film could ever muster. If I were a member of the music branch, I would be writing to the Academy at this very moment, protesting this decision. I would also be worried that any time a famous big time musician got bypassed, that someone is going to suffer the consequences of a political hissy fit.

Listen to this beautiful piece of music and know that the people who worked on this still have something to be proud of.

I had never heard of this movie before but I am now going to look for it and try to watch and post on it. I hope that the low budget and other limitations still allow a good story to be told. Mr Broughton, I have heard your music in many films and television projects and they have always been worthy and professional. You have probably heard for years how great the score from “Silverado” was. Hold your head up high and know that you did nothing wrong, this is just the cutthroat industry that you have made your living in for many years. There are wonderful people in the industry but there are also a lot of self important ass kissers. You stepped on someones toes by asking for the same kind of consideration that anyone else would be entitled to and they would usually demand it at the top of their lungs. I’m sorry you have suffered this indignity. I hope that whatever set of envious colleagues were responsible for this travesty will certainly receive the karma they have earned from this tantrum.

Best Movie Theaters Los Angeles – Screenings, Films

I’ve been to most of these venues. The newer ones with the fancy amenities are not yet an experience I’ve had but The Nuart, Vista, Chinese, Sunset 5, and Arclight  are all gems. The Silent Movie Theater has great programming but an uncomfortable venue. Left off of this list is the great Egyptian Theater, which is only used for special programming which may be why it did not make the list.

I saw JAWS at a screening at the Vista back in 2009, got to meet screenwriter Carl Gottlieb there.

Take a look and imagine seeing a great movie in a great theater.